Red legs, great tits and fat balls ...

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Red legs, great tits and fat balls ...

by EllieGant @ 11/10/2009 – 19:24:52

... can only mean one thing.

Yes, I am succumbing to a twitching craze. This weekend's tally includes a buzzard, a kestrel, an owl (dunno what sort), a robin, a pheasant, two wrens, a goldfinch (I think) blue tits, great tits, sparrows and four of these characters ...

They made their way into the garden and I have no idea what they are. If anyone knows, let me know.

Inspired by all this bird activity, I have been making bird lardy cake; a lovingly concocted melange of chopped nuts, fresh seeds and cereal and best Co-op lard.

And you know what? The fussy gits prefer the Lidl 'six for a quid' ones.

I feel just like my mother must have felt when I spurned her home-made sponge in favour of a Mr. Kipling's.
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- wildlife
- garden
- birds

26 Comments to Red legs, great tits and fat balls ...

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- QueeneMab
- 11/10/2009 @ 19:36:29
I believe it is a partridge.

X
- - EllieGant
  - 12/10/2009 @ 17:27:51
  How fantastic - I didn't realise there were any around here. Though come to think of it, I'm not sure I thought of them anywhere except maybe in pear orchards! They were gorgeous though - what a thrill! x
  - - QueeneMab
    - 12/10/2009 @ 20:39:31
    BOL
    
    They are beautiful birds.
    
    Best in pear trees, stews etc........
    
    X
    - - EllieGant
      - 13/10/2009 @ 09:49:32
      I don't think I could have the heart to eat them in a stew ...
      
      ... unless they came in a Waitrose 'here's one we prepared earlier' disguise
      - QueeneMab
        
        13/10/2009 @ 19:42:55
        
        The good thing about a casserole pack is that they are not recognisable.
        
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- isadora101
- 11/10/2009 @ 19:41:01
That's an amazing array of birds to see in one weekend and now it seems you also have visiting Partridges, wow!!
- - EllieGant
  - 12/10/2009 @ 17:29:01
  Yes it was. We live in a more rural area now, but it seems the colder weather has been making the birds more visible. I've got a big sack of peanuts, because they are eating far more than in the garden I used to have! x
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- MrFlighty
- 11/10/2009 @ 19:43:47
Lucky you, especially seeing an owl! QueeneMab is right as you can see
http://www.rspb.org.uk/wildlife/birdguide/name/r/redleggedpartridge/index.asp
Happy twitching! xx
- - EllieGant
  - 12/10/2009 @ 17:30:58
  Yes, I got very excited about the owl. It was perched on a fence post by the road when I was coming back from a rehearsal. It looked really ghostly. How thrilling to see red-legged partridges. They must have wondered out of the corn stubbled field opposite. x
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- menhir
- http://www.myword.blog.co.uk
- 11/10/2009 @ 19:47:52
I've been discussing starting up the bird feeding regimes again. The last lot of peanuts took a long time to disappear, though my lettuce leaves didn't!

Nowt wrong wi' six for a quid, they go faster than anything else. The blackbirds are experts at unhooking the fat balls, as they are, in shaking out the seed holders.
- - EllieGant
  - 12/10/2009 @ 17:33:43
  When we moved in there was a feeder of peanuts, and the birds were already going mad. Now I am having to refill the holder almost daily. I think it is because we are in a more rural area with not so much availability.
  
  No, the Lidl fat balls are great, but something kept pinching them, so I switched to home-made cake in a feeder. Now I know who the culprits are - though my dad says he has also seen magpies running off with them. It worries me because I'd read the net can harm wildlife.
  - - menhir
    - http://www.myword.blog.co.uk
    - 13/10/2009 @ 20:31:10
    Not sure about the net, the fat balls do have to supported by something. Even our garden centres, which are meant to be aware, have stock with the same type of holder/netting.
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- menhir
- http://www.myword.blog.co.uk
- 11/10/2009 @ 19:49:52
PS Owls are often seen posing on gateposts; one time I used to ogle, now I bat an eyelid or two. More often than not, I peer at birds of prey.
- - EllieGant
  - 12/10/2009 @ 17:34:44
  Yes - the one I saw was on a fence post by the road. And the birds of prey often sit on the telegraph pole outside the house.
  - - menhir
    - http://www.myword.blog.co.uk
    - 13/10/2009 @ 20:34:09
    Funny isn't it, owls are birds of prey too, somehow, in our minds they don't jump to mind the same as kestrels, eagles, peregrine falcons and buzzards.
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- Bushka ^Pro
- Bushka
- 11/10/2009 @ 19:57:28
What a delightful array of feathered friends you have - you must be fairly close to woodland....partridges too! Wow! x
- - EllieGant
  - 12/10/2009 @ 17:35:58
  There's a small strip of woodland not too far away, but generally it is fairly open. I think the partridges had just exited a field that had corn stubble. Exciting though!
  - - Bushka ^Pro
    - Bushka
    - 12/10/2009 @ 19:33:24
    They are quite delectable to eat....
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- malakeas ^Pro
- http://www.blog.co.uk/user/malakeas
- 11/10/2009 @ 20:10:06
I like the birds roaming about but given half a chance, the Trio chase them away. X
- - EllieGant
  - 12/10/2009 @ 17:36:42
  Do your dogs leap up at them when they are flying into bushes? Ours did when she was younger - they drove her crazy!
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- jenray ^Pro
- http://www.jenniferhunter.co.uk
- 11/10/2009 @ 20:21:19
oh, how lucky you are... I do so miss the assortment of birds that we used to see where we lived before with the woodland at the back of the garden...and now none at all here...such a clear pic of the partridge... GBHs...XXX
- - EllieGant
  - 12/10/2009 @ 17:38:14
  We definitely see more birds now we are in a less built up area. I'm surprised the photo came out, as it was taken through a (grubby) kitchen window! x
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- trintrin1x
- 11/10/2009 @ 21:32:10
That is some asortment,you should open a sanctuary xx
- - EllieGant
  - 12/10/2009 @ 17:38:47
  BOL - it's a nice idea! x
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- jackfrost ^Pro
- 12/10/2009 @ 12:10:58
Red legged Partridge
- - EllieGant
  - 12/10/2009 @ 17:39:40
  Aw - a better pic than mine. I wish I'd got a photo of one of my lot hopping up the steps. How exciting - I hope they come back.
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